How It Starts
by EpicNinjaSushi
Summary: AU. What happens if a small thing is altered, so that Dick Grayson isn't taken home with Bruce Wayne that fateful night at the circus? How different will his life be, and will his life as a hero become something that never did, and never will exist?
1. A Bad Beginning

**Another story! Aren't I busy? :3 Please note that as the story progresses (there are multiple chapters) it will live up to it's rating. Enjoy, and if you have a problem with ANYTHING in here, review and let me know!**

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Richard Grayson was exceedingly abnormal. He was an eight year old boy whose parents had just been killed by falling to their deaths, because some fat gangster dude Dick himself had seen sent his goons to sabotage the ropes. He _was_ part of that show, _The Flying Graysons. _But that was over now. He would no longer be the star of the show, the youngest of the three people who could do a quadruple flip (the other two being his now dead parents). Now he was the only one.

Dick took the time to look at what had happened. Still up high on the trapeze platform, he got up the courage to look down. He wished he hadn't. Down below lie his parents mangled, broken, bloody bodies. John and Mary Grayson were swimming in their own blood, the blood their hearts could no longer pump.

Tears had already begun to fall at the sickening _crack _and the simultaneous gasp he heard from the crowd, but now, he was full-out bawling. He almost wanted to jump himself. Almost.

**"**_Voi fi bine, voi fi bine, voi fi bine." _ He murmured to himself through his tears in Romanian.Then in English, which he was very good at "I'll be okay." He decided he liked Romanian a lot better than English long ago, but his mother always wanted him to learn the language. He might as well honor her wish.

Dick decided that just standing two hundred feet above the ground wasn't going to accomplish anything at all, so he climbed down. When he reached the his destination, he saw three people running towards him. A paramedic, a lady with a clipboard, and a man in a suit. But then, the man in the suit's cell phone rang, and he answered. After a short conversation Richard couldn't hear any of, he started running towards the exit.

The paramedic reached him first. "All you alright, son?" he asked, in a kind way, "Does anything hurt?"

Dick said. "I'm fine." With the best positive attitude he could muster.

"Alright then." the man said, and slowly walked towards his parents mangled bodies. Richard knew that he would never find a pulse, and the paramedic probably did, too. But everyone wants to at least look like a hero, right?

The lady with a clipboard came up to him, and kneeled down to be at his height. He could smell her vanilla perfume, and she looked almost menacing with her red-lipsticked smile.

"Hey, honey!" She said. "I'm Ms. Cathy, and I have to ask you a few questions. So first, what's your name?"

"Richard John Grayson." he said, grateful he knew what she was saying. Side note: Despite the fact Dick's first language was Romanian, he had no accent.

"Mmm-hmm, and do you have any family to legally adopt you?" she smiled again.

"No." he was trying to keep his answers short, he didn't want to start crying again.

"How old are you, sweetie?"she asked.

Dick responded, and did the same with a dozen or so other questions, before Ms. Cathy stood up and boldly announced to the entire circus tent he was going to an orphanage. That was just his luck.

And his luck, by the looks of recent events, did not appear to be very good.

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"I live here now?" Dick asked. The sleek blue Mercedes had pulled up in front of a pathetic looking brick building, with more than a few windows missing and/or broken, one even bloodstained.

"Yep!" Ms. Cathy said cheerily. Her eyes were darting around, as if she thought some delinquent child was going to jump out at her with a knife.

She led him up to the door, and handed the sheet to him. "Give this to whoever answers the door." She said quickly, and turned and ran back, her heels clicking sharply against the cracked cement. Dick didn't blame her. He wanted to do the same thing right now.

He rang the door bell instead. As he waited for someone to answer, he could feel the chilly wind of the night on his bare arms. then, something occurred to him.

"Where am I?" he said aloud. He rang the doorbell again. there were muffled voices, coming from inside, and Dick could hear cursing, too.

A tall, rather thin ginger boy answered. "Another reject, huh? Welcome to the club." he said. The way he was smiling, you'd think he was glad that Dick were here. And _not_ in a good way.

"I'm, uh, Richard. My parents just died from falling to their deaths. I uh, oh, here's the sheet!" Dick was careful not to use his name his parents and circus-mates called him. He wasn't stupid, he knew what a _dick _was, even though he appreciated the nickname all the same.

The boy gave him a funny look anyways. "Well," he said, taking the sheet from him. "I'm Roy, and I'm the oldest one here, meaning I'm in charge. Well, almost."

"Why almost?" Dick asked.

"Why don't you come inside, first?" he said. His pale face stretched into a smirk. You could tell he didn't know how to smile any other way.

Roy stepped in, and Dick followed. "I said almost because there's his really bad person that comes in, he owns this orphanage. His name is Mr. Kirby. Now, if you're lucky, you can escape-"

"No, you can't!" the voice of a boy called out, interrupting Roy. His eyes flashed with annoyance.

"As I was saying, before this unknown child so rudely interrupted me, you can escape before he comes, and then he'll never know you were here. But on one condition."

"What's that?" Dick said, eyes wide.

"Take me with you."

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**You like? I know, it was short, but the next chapter will be longer, I promise. :D It is the Roy Harper we all know and love, I put in just there. Oh, he and Dick will have fun. AND THEN A PLOT TWIST! Even though I'm not good at those. ^-^" I need you guys to tell me what color Roy's eyes are. In a review. It's really not that important, I just thought I could use it. A cell phone can make and BIG difference, can't it? Don't ask me what they did with his parents, I don't know. But now, our favorite robin will be away on an adventure. **

**I also have this random belief that Batman made Young Justice when he did because of Robin. So, Richard will play a big part in what will happen to all of our favorite heros. YAY!**

**Peace and Muffins**

**-F.o.t.D.S**


	2. Fight, Fight, Fight, Fight!

**Thanks to everyone to reviewed! I am now replying to those who weren't signed in...**

**Anon-**

**Thanks! I'm not gonna tell you much about the plot now, because that would just be one big spoiler, but I'm glad you like it! also, thank you, for telling me Roy's eyes are blue. i think i remember that episode now...**

**None-**

**Huzzah indeed!**

"Take you with me, but how? Won't he know you're gone?" Dick asked.

"Well, he only comes once a month, but he doesn't know about me yet. I've been here for five years. " Roy boasted.

"Wow." he breathed.

"Yep. So, whaddya say? Partners?" he stuck out his hand.

Dick shook it, his hand rather small compared to the older boy's. "Partners." he said.

"Well, then. Welcome to Gotham's own crap hole, Streetview Foster Home."

Roy lead Dick up two flights of stairs, then to the end of a hallway. The carpet underneath their feet was dirty, and the walls around them were stained.

They entered he room to their left at the end of the hall.

"This is my room." Roy said. The way he gestured to it, you'd think his was introducing him to the Queen of England. "I don't share, so you can have the one across the hall. Do whatever the hell you want with it."

"Roy," Dick said. "Why are we alone?"

"Because of, um, privacy." Roy didn't completely understand the question. So he asked one himself. "So Richard, can you tell me about yourself? I'll tell you about me."

"Okay, Roy! Well, first of all, I'm almost nine, my birthday's on the twenty-first. And, I'm here 'cause my parents died from falling to their deaths right before my eyes about half an hour ago." He took deep breath, and Roy could see tears coming to the young ebony's eyes. "And I'm about to help you do whatever you want to do when we escape from this orphanage. Oh, and I'm a professional acrobat!"

This kid was weird. But this kid also seemed helpful. Acrobat, good. And he was small and adorable, and with his big blue yes, he could win over anybody.

"Well, that was... informative. I'm fourteen, and I'm here because my parents are dead, too. I'm not a pro acrobat, but I can do a backflip. And when I escape from this orphanage with you, we're gonna go to Star City."

"Why Star City?" Richard asked.

"Because Oliver Queen, a _billionaire_, lives there. And Oliver Queen is looking to adopt anyone from ages thirteen to sixteen. Making me _perfect _for the job. And the offer is still valid, because I just found out from yesterday's paper."

"But Roy, I already told you, I'm only almost nine."

"Oh well, uh, well, you can, um, go to a better orphanage, where they feed you!"

"Okay, Roy!" Dick said WAY too happily.

"Well, Richard, there is exactly one rule I have to teach you about being on the streets, first."

"What?"

"Always fight for yourself, unless you have someone's complete trust. That means going up against both Joker AND Batman, because you can never tell who really is on your side. And yes, you can trust me."

"But Roy, I don't know how to fight," the little ebony said.

The teen smirked. "Oh, you will. You're going to train, right here in the orphanage, starting now."

Dick walked shyly behind Roy, who was strutting like a peacock. They entered a room full of kids that looked a little bit older than himself, yet much younger than the ginger.

"Okay, Richard." Roy said. "We're gonna start you off easy. You're gonna fight a ten- year old." He gestured to a blonde boy sitting on a bunk, swinging his legs aimlessly.

"But he's _older! _ How does that make it easy?" the young boy sounded absolutely terrified.

"Just trust me." he said, looking down towards his new friend. " Yo, Bill! Come fight the newbie, Richard." Roy shouted at the blonde, as he stepped aside so that Dick was visible.

Bill jumped off the bunk, and landed on his side. "Ow." he said.

The boy got up, and stepped into something that looked kind of like a fighting stance.

"Ready, midget?" the blonde teased.

The raven gulped, before weakly answering. "Yeah. Are you?"

"I don't need to be." he radiated confidence and arrogance.

"Okay, now fight!" Roy said.

Bill threw a punch, which caught Richard off-guard. He yelped as he jumped to the side, and made a kick to his attacker's nose.

The blonde fell to the ground, nose bleeding, and whimpering something like. "No fair!"

He slowly got back up, wiped his nose on he t-shirt sleeve, and got into classic boxing-stance. "I'm not going easy on you anymore, punk." He smirked.

But this time, Dick made the first move, a hard punch to the solar plexus.

"Oof!" Bill exclaimed. He stumbled backwards, and then leaned against the wall to his left. "I'll kill you!" he screamed. But leaning on a wall and panting, it wasn't much of a threat.

"Right after I do!" Richard cackled, as he kicked the boy on the back of the head, knocking the blonde out cold. His lips slipped into a triumphant grin over his pale face.

"Wow." Roy said. "That was amazing. Oh, I mean, pretty good, for a newbie."

"Thanks, Roy!" Richard ran over and gave him a hug around the middle. The teen looked surprised, but was warm smirk formed as he gently hugged back.

"I think we can move you up to the twelve year-olds."

"That means I'm kinda good at this, right?" The ebony released the ginger, and looked up at him with hopeful blue eyes.

Roy couldn't help but laugh.

Dick walked triumphantly out of the room, where the his new friend was waiting for him.

"How'd it go?" Roy said even thought he already knew.

"I _won_, Roy! Against all five of them!" Dick looked so happy and proud the ginger couldn't resist pulling him into a hug.

"I bet you did a hell of a great job, Richard." he said, and he meant it.

Dick hugged back, and didn't let go until his elder did.

"Are you, hungry?" the teen asked.

"A little bit. I had a banana yesterday." Richard said

"You had a freakin' _banana _yesterday?" Roy sounded bewildered. "You need to eat more than that, if you're gonna be a fighter."

"Do you have food?" The ebony said, as two pairs of blue eyes met.

"Well, no." Roy sounded almost ashamed. "But we can go get some."

"How? Do you have money?"

"Um, no, I have to, um, steal sometimes, and um, get stuff out, of the, uh, trash..." The ginger's voice sounded ashamed as it trailed off.

"That's okay, Roy. I've never done that before, though."

Roy was relieved the raven accepted his way of life. After all, this kid was pretty much his follower, and wouldn't that be just downright depressing if he started to dislike him just because of that?

"Right, then. Let's go get some dinner."

Roy lead the young boy through alleyways and side-streets, until he found what he was looking for.

"Man," Dick said. "For trash, this smells decent."

"That's because this trash is worth four-hundred dollars." The teen said, as he reached in and pulled out a sealed box full of vegtable scraps.

"Couldn't they have used that to cook with, or something?" he asked.

"Yeah, but all of the rich jerks like Bruce Wayne need 'only the best'" Roy said as he made quote marks in the air.

"Who's Bruce Wa-" The ebony was cut off.

"Shh! Someone's coming!" The ginger whispered harshly.

"Did you hear something, Brucey?" A woman with rather large breasts said.

"Yeah, I'm scared." another said.

"Ladies, I'm sure it was nothing." A man with dark hair said. "Now, really, I must go." He said as he walked of towards a sleek black limo waiting across the street.

"That" Roy said, "Is Bruce Wayne, _playboy_ billionaire."

**So, what did you think? This was honestly shorter than I wanted it to be, but I think I actually got somewhere. Tell me what you think!**

**~F.o.t.D.S.**


	3. A Chat

**Hi, guys! I want to thank you all for responding to this! I appreciate it a lot. I'm TRYING to update more, but I am sometimes occupied with the bothersome things in life, like, say, school. Oh, well, enough ramblings. Happy reading!**

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><p>Dick and Roy, after bring the scraps back and cooking them, decided it was time to take action.<p>

Now, let's go, uh, _prepare_, huh?" The ginger said to the ebony, standing up from the table.

"Sure, Roy." he said, and they headed off up the stairs.

As soon as they reached Roy's room, Roy began talking about their 'master escape plan'.

"It's simple." He explained. "West of Gotham is Happy Harbor, and North-West is Star City." Roy showed Dick this on a little blue map of the United States.

"Uh-huh." Dick jumped up on Roy's bed, and the older boy followed.

"It's actually faster to go around Happy Harbor, so we'll be doing that."

Dick nodded. "Questions?" Roy asked.

"Do we get to see any super-heros?"

Roy looked down at him. Super heros? They- he was going to see _Oliver Queen_! Billionaire! When in the name of Earth would they manage to see a masked vigilante? "Why do you want to see one?" He _tried _to answer calmly.

"I've just never seen one before, that's all." The ebony looked almost ashamed.

"Oh, um, okay. Well then, continuing." Roy then began to explain how they would travel at night in Gotham, but in the daytime everywhere else to get the best coverage, and related subjects. Richard listened intently.

"That sums it up. You got all that?" Roy asked the younger boy.

Dick nodded. "Yes. It seems like a good plan."

"Good."

"Hey, Roy?"

"What is it, Richard?" the teen asked, slightly annoyed.

"Are you kind like my _frate_?"

"_What _did you just call me?" Roy looked at Richard with concern and uncertainty.

Dick blushed and looked down. "It- it means brother in Romany."

Roy wasn't sure how to react. "I, uh, okay." And though the ginger wasn't saying it, he wanted to be Richard's brother, too. But that would mess up his plan.

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><p>Dick and Roy walked to downtown Gotham, the warm Spring breeze touching their faces as they talked.<p>

"I've been thinking..." Roy said as he looked at his "brother" with concern. "We need to toughen you up more."

"Toughen me up?" The ebony's pale face stretched into a look of confusion.

"You need to be more intimidating- when you need to be." The teen said, knowing that his innocent looks would come in pretty handy.

"Oh." Dick said simply, not fully understanding.

"You're too cute. And people will be confused if the see a little orphaned kid beating the shit out of someone." They stopped at a red light, and watched a police car zoom past, sirens wailing. It made Dick think.

"So... if I beat up someone, then they gotta be scared?" Dick looked up at Roy with big eyes.

"Yeah, pretty much. so I was thinking... if Batman's so scary just 'cause he wears a cowl, then why can't we be scary?"

"You just said it was 'cause I'm too cute, Roy. Oh, light's green." They resumed their walk.

"I know, Richard. But we need something distinct, something to cover up the eyes, like a mask."

"Awesome." Dick said. "Where do we get a mask?"

Roy let out a half-hearted laugh. "Dude, we live in a world with fucking _superheros_! It'd be a crime not to sell them in every other store!"

"Good point."

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><p><strong>How was it? Did I make any run-on sentences? (I hate those.) Reviews help me to improve. I now must ask you to review for a special reason. I need y'all to tell me if you listen to music while you write or not, and what genre andor bands you like best. I currently listen to a lot of Alternative Rock and such. I just want to get better at writing, so it will be greatly appreciated if you can tell me. ^ ^ (That means review.) APOLOGIES FOR THE SHORTNESS.**

**Peace**

**~ EPICNINJASUSHI**


	4. An Unplanned Meeting

**Well, I'm REALLY sorry for how short that last chapter was. Ima try not to let that happen again, kay? And the long wait? Gosh, I'm sorry about that, too. But here goes the continuation! Enjoy! AND REVIEW. SERIOUSLY, I'LL UPDATE FASTER.**

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><p>Roy strutted around Walgreen's, pretending he wasn't stealing something. Dick copied, hands in pockets and a dirty black hoodie over his head. He looked down the entire time. The older boy leaned down and whispered roughly, "You got 'em?"<p>

Dick nodded. He nervously fingered the objects in his pocket and gulped. He went over Roy's plan in his head. _Find some chick that looks like she could be your mom, and follow her out. Then, when the alarms go off and they check her, you run and hid behind the Redbox. I'll come out soon after._

A stalky woman with a beige trench coat bustled by him. She had short black hair, perfect for Dick's getaway plan. He quickly made a waving gesture with his hand once she had passed, which Roy took note of and nodded his head in response.

Dick sucked in deeply before stalking after the woman, whom had already checked out. Bags in hand, she walked out the door, with Dick close behind. Roy watched from the snack aisle.

As soon as they passed, alarms blared. The woman, already out the door, turned around, a confused expression plastered on her face. The ebony's eyes widened, as he realized this was his opportunity. He slipped passed her, and bolted to the left, where the rendezvous point was located. He sat behind it, trying to look nonchalant as possible. The minutes he waited for Roy felt like hours.

He pressed his thin body against the machine, waiting as his heart-rate increased with every passing second. Never before had he done anything like this that he could get in trouble for. It was a rush. It was _exhilarating._

A hand was placed on his shoulder. He jumped, half-expecting it to be a cop. Thank God, it was just his brother, the same familiar smirk on his face.

_"_Richard, I gotta say, that was pretty damn impressive for a first time. Now let's get the hell out of here." He motioned for them to continue down the cracked sidewalk.

"Thanks, Roy." Dick started off, a light spring in his step, and a small smile on his face.

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><p>Roy sat atop the beaten-down foster home, awaiting nightfall as he stared at Gotham's sunset. His lanky legs were crossed, and his masked eyes were transfixed on the orange sun in the distance.<p>

"Harper, what the hell have you fucking gotten yourself into?" He muttered to himself, propping his chin upon his elbow, which was rested on his knee. He sighed deeply.

His plan had been simple. From the day he'd turned eleven, he'd figured out what had to be done in order to live a decent life. First, find a family adopting in his age-group. Then, get a kid to follow him, preferably younger. He'd decided this when he thought about other complications, like cops and helicopter parents. If someone was after him, just push that kid out there, and continue, praying nothing happens the rest of the way.

He'd done all that. But there was now a problem he didn't think he'd come across. He loved the kid he'd "taken under his wing".

It was stupid, alright. But really, it was impossible not to. He was adorable, eager, willing to do anything for him, and he was planning on rejecting him like this? It was probably some sort of holy sin.

He stood up and stretched. tonight was the night, he was going to head out, start on his journey to see if he was worthy of becoming Oliver Queen's new kid, which he sure as hell already was. With his good looks, skills, and all around charm, he could definitely win anyone over. Or at least, most people. Now that Richard kid, oh, he has struck _gold _with him. It would be difficult to find someone _not _in love with him- like he had.

Roy paced over to the other edge, so he was facing the general direction of Star City. He could see their downtown buildings, that were tall enough to almost look menacing, but had an odd comforting appeal to them. It was a different sort of feel than what he got from living in Gotham, one he liked. Sure, Gotham made him feel tough just to walk around there at nighttime, but the thought that there were over two-dozen _super villains _that could attack hi anytime seriously creeped him out. There was Batman, sure, but everyone knows Green Arrow was better. He'd choose trick-arrows over batarangs any day.

Roy looked down, off the edge of the building. He saw a husky figure going towards the doors- was that?- no, it was freaking Mr. Kirby himself.

"Shit, shit shit, shit, " he said so quickly, it was almost one word, He began to quickly pace the grayish rooftop. "Wait, Richard! Fuck!"

As soon as Roy remembered his partner, he more than sprinted through the door and down the rickety stairs. "Richard!" he shouted, as soon as he got in. No reply.

Roy ran down the stairs at a speed to rival the Flash's, praying he could find him in time. He raced to the hallway where his room was, where his was hoping he would be, having to grab onto the white doorframe in order to not go past. And, thank the Lord, there he was, sitting on his bed, kicking his legs playfully while humming an unrecognizable tune.

He sighed, relief taking him over. Still, he had to act fast. He grabbed the confused boy's arm and hustled him out of the smallish room. "Roy? What's wrong?" he said.

"Shut up, he might hear us!" Roy hissed.

Dick stopped himself fro asking who he might be. Because he was facing him. And he was already speaking, asking "Who the bloody hell are you two?"

Roy swore under his breath. He stood up, tried to look professional. "I, uh, needed, um," he stammered. He was paralyzed. He'd never actually run into a problem as serious as this before.

Dick, noticing the older boy's obvious fear, decided to show him that he was brave, which he later realized was in theory, a really stupid idea. He marched over the the impatient looking Mr. Kirby, a look of determination on his place face. All in one move, he did a stunningly graceful front flip, a small jump, and delivered a perfectly-aimed kick to his nose. The man stumbled backwards, and quickly brought a hand to his already bloodied face. He leaned against the wall, feeling dizzy. Dick, having learned from his previous fights, threw a punch Mr. Kirby's stomach, followed by a kick right to where it hurts.

"Are you a demon child from hell or somethin?" Mr. Kirby's gruff voice was full of pain and confusion. He was on his knees at this point.

Richard was perplexed by the question. "No?" he tried. He noticed the man's hand reaching for him and dashed off towards Roy before he could grab him. He grabbed the older boy's hand as he passed, dragging him along as he went down the stairs. Mr. Kirby had already stood back up, and had begun to pursue his attacker. Roy was amazed. This kid was fucking perfect! Yeah, he was amazing before, but now he was sacrificing himself for the better of him? It made him feel terribly guilty and warm at the same time.

They got to the lobby, adrenaline rushing through their veins.

"Now what?" Dick asked. HJe was practically radiating excitement.

Roy sighed. "For lack of a better alternative, I suggest we go where he's least likely to look; the roof. And it's where I stashed everything, too, so don't go worrying about that."

Dick, still feeling the rush from his little fight, ran right over to the fire escape, and propelled himself up, landing on the rusting green balcony. He motioned for Roy to do the same, "C'mon!" he urged.

Roy stood up a little straighter, giving himself a bit more dignity, before copying the eight- year old, who was already three stories ahead of him, out of the fifteen. Through the jumps and "simple" acrobatic moves, Roy couldn't help but glance down every now and then, to see where Mr. Kirby was. Right now, he was in front of the orphanage, looking around all confused-like. After letting out a loud huff sound, still audible to Roy over the buzz of traffic, he entered the crappy little building. He mentally breathed a sigh of relief. That kept him safe.

The teen pushed himself up onto the building, and brushed himself off. Dick was waiting on the electric box, staring off into the indigo sky where the sun had set The cold breeze tousled his ebony hair, and he shivered as he wrapped his arms around himself.

Roy went behind the door, where he'd hidden his stash of utilities and such. In a large duffel bag, there was extra clothes for both him and Richard, the masks, dry food, his map, the newspaper he'd gotten inspired by, and of course, weapons. Roy had found the various knives in the kitchen of the foster-home, as well as bloodied and more dangerous ones left behind be thugs on the streets on Gotham. He wasn't too good at hand-to-hand combat, but he could throw a knife with deadly accuracy. He was even better with a bow and arrow, his weapon of choice.

Dick wandered over to where Roy was standing and curiously peeked into the bag. He noticed the knives immediately.

"What are those for?" He asked, though he already knew.

"Self defense." Roy answered promptly. An idea popped into his head. "You wanna try throwing one at the back of this door-thing?"

Richard nodded as he eagerly removed a very sleek knife. It fit perfectly in his pale hand. About twenty feet from his target, he moved his jean-clad legs into a position in which his left one was forward, and squinted at the wall. He jutted his left arm out, his right one with the knife held behind his head. He then stepped forward and threw the weapon, all in one motion. It landed perfectly in a crack in the brick.

"Ho-ly fuck." Roy said, with a little dog whistle to prove is point. "You meant to do that, right?"

Dick grinned, his bright smile seeming a bit more menacing than before.


	5. Batman Observes From Afar

**Mein Gott, I'm sorry! I don't know why not how it took me so long to actually write this, but I swear, this one was hard. It's like a transition chapter, ya know? I never liked those. Ah, well, no pain, no gain, right? Seriously though, I'm sorry.**

**Also, i'd like to point out this is an AU, so nothing fro the show is not happening/ is guaranteed to happen. Just putting that out there. You know, that whole thing with Roy being abducted... it never happened. It won't. There will be no epic fight with Roy, Dick, and Green Arrow against some random alien dudes, okay?**

**I'd also like to thank all of my lovely reviewers and people who put me and/or my story on alert. I love you guys, seriously. And if I don't respond, just remember, I read every single one of them, and the more I get, the more I am inspired to update.**

**Disclaimer: I want to own Young Justice. Meaning, I don't, so don't sue.**

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><p>Richard smirked, his perfect white teeth illuminated with the twilight. That was a yes.<p>

Roy raised his eyebrows, then smiled back. "Awesome. We can use that aim. Now let's move, before some sorta miracle happens for Mr. K and he looks up." With that, Roy scooped up their bags an handed the backpack to Dick, who went to retrieve the thrown knife. He slipped it into his sweatshirt pocket and pulled his hood up.

"Ready," he said.

Roy nodded and ran straight across the building, leaping over the ledge and onto the smaller one connected to their former foster home.

"Roy!" Dick called, freaked out that he'd just jumped off the edge of a fairly tall building.

The teen got up from the kneeling position he'd landed in and motioned for Richard to jump. "It's cool," he said "I used to do it all the time, just get a running start."

Dick gulped and retreated to the opposite of the roof. He turned around, and sprinted towards the ledge, and jumped off. Of course, habits from his old circus days kicked in, and something deep inside him compelled hi to flip. Just once, or twice. Maybe thrice. Yes, three times was good.

He flipped over and over, all in a quick, smooth motion, before, landing on his hands on the building Roy was on and pushing himself into the air once more, then back to his feet.

Roy, in a nutshell, was pretty damn impressed. This kid was getting better by the minute, which just worsened the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He'd make what he was going to do up to him. Somehow.

"Holy fuck, Richard, that was awesome!"

A faint pink washed Dick's cheeks, and he laughed lightly. "Thank you, Roy."

It became apparent to the teenager that Richard was shy. That, the more sinister, unloving part of his mind told him, was very good. It increased the cuteness factor. And the brotherly part of him liked it too. Not just because it was adorable to him, but because it meant he might get adopted sooner, into a caring family that would be nice to him. Richard definitely deserved it, anyways.

However, letting go of this little boy he loved would be one of the most difficult things Roy ever did.

The duo had been running for quite a while now, but despite this, Richard was still laughing as he somersaulted off another building.

The sun had set long ago, leaving nothing but a light- polluted sky with no moon to see whenever one would look up. It was still kind of beautiful to Dick, though, who had a habit of looking up at the fake orange- tinted clouds as he jogged across the rooftops. He'd given up sprinting as soon as he figured Roy would want to catch up and he wouldn't want to waste his energy like this. They still had a long ways to go; traveling Happy Harbor's and Central City's minor cities and borderlines.

Dick slowed down at the edge of the building he was on the breathe. Roy appeared by his side, lightly panting.

"Are you ready to walk on the street, Roy?" Dick asked.

"Naw, let's wait 'till we get outta' Gotham, first."

"Okay." was Richard's quiet response.

And so, they did, after about another ten minutes worth of alternating running, sprinting, and walking from building to building, depending on what was going on in the alleys below (quite a few criminal acts, Dick noticed) and how tired they were. And then, the last rooftop. Roy got there first, so he patiently waited for Richard while he chugged some water out of one of the many bottles they had brought with them.

"Roy," Richard panted, when he got there, "I'm confused. What am I gonna do when you go live with that billionaire guy, again?"

Roy choked on his water. The dreaded question had arrived.

* * *

><p>Bruce Wayne, or Batman, seeing as he was in uniform now, was perched on the top of his favorite gargoyle, watching the cit and making sure Gotham's finest weren't biting off more than they could chew; a common occurrence.<p>

And then, something interesting caught his eye. Two young looking boys, darting across the rooftops, carrying bags and backpacks and looking as suspicious and out of place as a wanted criminal in a daycare center. He switched on his built in Bat-noculars.

They both appeared to be generally unkempt, with clothing that was too big on them. The smaller one, whom Bruce had noted had scraggly black hair that fell over his eyes, was doing the occasional flip, like he knew someone was watching and just wanted to show off. That, or he was a trained assassin that was plotting to kill someone important.

He was tempted to go and watch more closely, maybe even talk with them, and freak them out, but observation was key in his line of work, so there he sat, glaring at them. Then, the older one, who was way in front at this point, stopped. There was no building to jump to, so he reached into his very suspicious duffel bag and pulled out a bottle of water,

Then, the short one arrived, and the two began to chat. Bruce wanted more than anything to go there, now.

The older one, who had red hair, must have heard something absurd from the little one, because he spewed out the water in his mouth and looked genuinely shocked and uncomfortable.

And Batman, being the semi-freak he is, was just getting up to get closer when-

"_Batman, we have an emergency with Clayface at the intersection of Fifth and Grand, over."_

Bruce growled, and replied "Acknowledged, I'll be right there, over."

And with that, he disappeared into the night.

* * *

><p>"Um, we discussed this already, didn't we, Richard? You go to a nice orphanage, you know, a proper one, where they feed you and there's actually a good system and a whole bunch of nice people and that sort of thing. You know, you'll make friends, and all that crap?"<p>

"Oh."

And so there was awkward silence.

* * *

><p><strong>So. Effin'. SHORT.<strong>

**I'm a horrible person. I procrastinate. **

**Don't kill me. This was hard to write. I hate filler.**

**REVIEW, PLEASE. I UPDATE SOOOOO MUCH FASTER WHEN YOU GUYS SUPPORT ME.**


	6. Making Progress

**I'm back! You missed me, didn't you?**

**Okay, maybe not, but we'll pretend you did, alright?**

**I don't own Young Justice.**

* * *

><p>Dick and Roy decided to camp out on top of a nearby building for the night, after deciding that alleyways in Gotham were very likely to get them killed, raped, maimed tortured, kidnapped, or something else of the like.<p>

Roy had chosen to sleep in the middle of the rooftop, in his green flannel sleeping bag he'd brought with him. Despite the fact it was a relatively warm Spring night, he still felt very cold and uncomfortable in is own skin. He let out a loud sigh.

"What's wrong, Roy?" a sleepy voice called from somewhere to his left.

"This sleeping bag smells like shit." he half-fibbed.

"Oh. Well, if you fall asleep, it'll probably stop." Richard said.

It was quiet once more. Eventually, they both fell asleep to the sound of a robbery below.

* * *

><p>"Master Bruce, I recommend you take this opportunity to get some sleep."<p>

Bruce was staring at a large monitor in the Batcave, still dressed in the Batsuit, minus the cowl. He continued to type away, answering with a hardly detectable "No thanks."

"May I ask what's troubling you, then?" he asked.

He stopped typing and sighed. Leaning back, he answered "You know me too well, Alfred. This may sound a little stupid, but I was on patrol, and I saw these two boys running across rooftops in the most dangerous part of town.

"I don't see why it's 'stupid' to be concerned about the safety of two little boys."

"No that's not it. It wasn't as if they were in danger, it was like they knew exactly what they were doing. One of the was even doing flips! It's more like, who are they working for, why are they there, what the hell have I missed in the villains' plan sort of thing."

"I can see why this is bothering you, Master Bruce, but may I suggest that you at least analyze this in bed?"

"Very well, Alfred. But I _am _going to look into that tomorrow."

Alfred let out a huff of air. "Goodnight, Master Bruce." He said firmly.

* * *

><p>Roy woke up to the sound of breaking glass. He immediately shot up out of his sleeping bag.<p>

"Richard!" he called out on instinct.

"Huh?" a voice from below asked.

"Richard?"

"Yeah, I'm down here. What is it?" Richard was calling up to Roy from the bottom of the building.

"What the hell are you doin'?"

"I was trying to wake you up."

"By throwing bottles at a wall?! Why didn't you just come shake me or something?" he asked.

"Not as fun. Come on, Roy, I wanna get moving!"

"Alright, I'll be down in a second." Roy stood up and let his sleeping bag fall to his ankles.

* * *

><p>The two were on the road, trying to ignore the weight of their baggage or the strong wind that whipped around them. It was cloudy- but the weather report in a newspaper Roy had dumpster-dived for said it wasn't supposed to rain for another week.<p>

He'd expected to be on the intrastate by now, but from what he could tell, the highway seemed another twenty minutes away.

Gotham and it's surrounding cities were all built on flat land, so it was easy to walk beside the highways and hide themselves. At night, they decided, they would either take side streets or walk on the actual highway, because of the risk of wild animals and rivers.

Neither of them were scared of gangs, but both hated nature.

They ate when they were hungry, sampling a little of all the food they'd brought along with them as they pleased. The breaks Roy allowed were few and far between, and usually lasted less than twenty minutes. They were both athletic, Richard admittedly more so, so long distance traveling was no problem whatsoever, but the younger seemed to have a short attention song, and was usually staring off into space or humming a song.

"It's getting kinda dark," Richard commented softly, hoisting up his bags onto his shoulders.

"Yeah, and we have to find the westbound exit soon. It should come up soon, and then only a little bit after that 'till we're in Central City. From there, we can try and get a bus to Star City, which is about another twenty miles away."

Now that Richard had broken the silence, they began to fill it with small talk. Roy, as it turned out, was an excellent shot with a bow and arrow, and until he'd been put in the foster system, spent most of his time with archery. Richard said he'd always been interested in archery, since some of the performers on Haley's Circus shot flaming arrows at on another as a sideshow or during intermission.

They continued with their exchanges like this for a long time, and the two hours it took for them to reach their exit seemed much shorter than that. They'd gotten to be pretty attached- and that scared the absolute fuck out of Roy.

He needed a plan of action, and fast.

* * *

><p>Central City was everything Gotham wasn't. Safe, clean, and a history of superheroes that didn't only show up at night. If he wasn't so intent on getting to Star City, Roy might want to stay here a while.<p>

Of course, that was preposterously sentimental.

Night had fully fallen, and Roy was lucky the lamps on the main streets here were in fully operating condition, unlike in Gotham. Richard, who was trailing behind them, seemed interested in the lack of graffitied buildings.

They got the the poor part of town (because every city has one) where the murders and crimes were. It wasn't that late at night, only only eight forty-five, as an electronic clock in a store window had stated, and neither of them were the least bit concerned when they heard heavy footsteps behind them. After all, there were plenty of people around.

The footsteps were really getting on Roy's nerves, but if there was one thing he learned from the streets, it was to never let you enemy know that you're scared. He breathed a sigh of relief when they stopped. He spun around to see where their stalker had gone and-

There was no ebony-haired little kid behind him. _Shit._

He sprinted back, stopping suddenly when he heard muffled grunts from an alleyway.

"_Richard!_" he screamed. Fuck. That was unprofessional.

He heard the _thump _of a body collapsing. The person who had attacked Dick turned out to be a very muscular man, and he was...

...unconscious, with cuts littering his face.

"Did you... did you do this?"

Richard was breathing heavily. "Yeah... I... beat... 'im... up." He forced between breaths.

Roy wanted to shout and cry and smile and _sweet Jesus this kid is amazing._

"Can I... have some water?"

Still speechless, Roy dug around in his duffel bag for an Ice Mountain.

"Let's find a place to sleep." He finally said (after Richard downed the whole bottle).


End file.
